My Sweet Esme
by hannahbananaroxsox
Summary: All human. Esme first spots Carlisle when she moves to a new school and both leave a lasting impression on the other. What will happen when they meet again five years later?  Alternating POV. Rated M for later chapters and mention of rape
1. Chapter 1

**So... I've been working on this story for a while and have decided to start uploading it and I hope to do a once a week upload, probably on a saturday.**

**This is an all human story of what I think Carlisle and Esme's lives would be like. There is an alternating point of view which will start to alternate chapters about halfway through :L**

**(Oh, and if you have time, go and check my Twiligh-HoN crossover - I'm working on a sequel, but this has been my main priority - screw my A-Levels :L)**

_**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, they belong to Stephenie Meyer. (I'm only saying this once so that you guys can go a read the story and I'm likely to forget to put it at the beginning of every chapter anyways)**_

**(Last thing I'm going to say - I'm British and have never visited America, so bear with me on the locations - when I started writing this I had no internet connection, so couldn't do much research on the area, so have gone from what I know from the books. Also, the school years I found a little difficult - Carlisle in the chapters at school is in what we in the UK call Year 13 or Upper Sixth (rising/turned 18) and Esme would be in Year 11 (rising/turned 16). And over here we usually go straight to university from sixth form, unless we have a gap year, and I know in America, mainly from films, that a lot of you will go to college or something before embarking on uni so when Carlisle is training to be a doctor, you may think he seems a little young, but he really isn't.)**

**Happy reading!**

**xxx**

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Chapter 1

Esme POV

I took a deep breath before stepping out of my father's car. Another new school. He had been in the army when myself and my little sister, Kate, started school, so we moved a lot.

This was the final move. We had previously lived in purpose built accommodation near to the army barracks and since Dad had retired, he decided to move us away once and for all.

I always hated being the new girl, but arriving a couple of months before the end of the school year was hell. Everyone was staring as I walked towards reception. As usual I did something embarrassing, today pushing a pull door was first on the agenda. I blushed bright red and hurried into the small office. Sitting just inside the door was the girl who lived opposite us.

Angela had offered to show me around at the weekend. We were quite alike, but not so much that we clashed. Both bookworms, expected relatively good grades and both quiet and kinda shy.

"So, I got you your timetable," she said, handing me a piece of paper. "We're in nearly all the same classes. Apart from art. I can only really draw buildings."

I smiled and let her lead me to my first class. She met me after each class and helped me find the next, pointing out her friends along the way so I could talk to them if I couldn't find Angela.

I sat with Angela at lunch, along with her friends Mike, Eric and Jessica. I listened to Jessica babble non-stop about things that had happened at the weekend. Apparently some guy called Carlisle Cullen had turned her cousin down and Jessica was pretty glad about it.

"It means we can drool over him until the end of the year. If she dated him we'd never see him again because she'd be busy screwing him." She shrugged, "I know she's family, but she is a bit of a slut to be honest."

"Who's Carlisle Cullen?" I asked.

Jessica beamed. _Obviously she likes talking about him_. "Well, he's only the hottest guy in town. He's in his last year and is going to be a doctor. He lives with his aunt and uncle."

"Oh," I said.

"He makes me want to become a nurse sometimes. I'd love to work with him," Jess mused.

"In more ways than one!" Eric whispered to me, making me laugh.

She scowled at him before looking up and gawping. "That's him."

I glanced to my left, towards the door. Standing there was definitely the hottest guy I have ever seen. Blonde hair, blue eyes, slim but muscular, a smile playing on his lips.

My heart stopped in my chest when he looked at me, before walking across the room to a table in the corner where two of his friends were sitting. You could practically hear the increased heartbeats as all the girls swooned.

"I see what you mean," I said, turning my attention back to the table. Jess and Angela both sat open-mouthed at me. "What?"

"He smiled at you! He's never smiled at any of us," Jess said in a daze.

Carlisle POV

When I walked into the cafeteria, I saw the most beautiful girl I had ever seen in my life. Dark and wavy caramel coloured hair, high cheekbones and eyes the colour of the greenest grass.

My heart stopped in my chest as I locked my eyes with hers. Looking at her set off a spark in my heart. She had to be the new girl.

Esme Platt.

I heard her dad was in the army and had recently retired and decided to move the family away from where he was previously based.

I smiled at her briefly, before noticing Jessica Stanley practically drooling. _She needs to get a grip. I wont ever be interested in someone related to the slut that tried to jump me on Saturday. Jeez._

I walked over to sit with my only two friends, Seth and Garrett. Both were laughing over something.

"What's tickling you two?" I raised an eyebrow as I sat down.

"Heard about the girl that tried to hit on you on Saturday. What did you say to her?" Seth asked when he had sobered up a little.

I sighed. "Sorry, I don't purchase spoiled goods."

Garrett doubled over as I said the line with a completely straight face. I rolled my eyes at Seth, who was just grinning.

"On another note. What do you think of the new girl, Esme?" Seth said.

I smirked. "Well, she's very beautiful."

"Oooh! Someone's in luurve!" They said in unison.

"No, I just think she's a lot prettier than the riffraff that hangs around here usually," I lied.

"Mmm hmm. And I'm a leprechaun." Garrett raised an eyebrow sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes and threw the crust of my sandwich at his head.

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**So, what do you think? Yay or nay?**


	2. Chapter 2

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**Here's the next chapter! **

**Keep in mind what I said about the school years on the first A/N last chapter :D**

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Chapter 2

Carlisle POV

The few times I saw Esme at school before I left she either had her nose in a book, or would be drawing on a notepad. Whenever she saw me, she would smile, blush and then hide behind her hair when our eyes met.

After three weeks, a week before the bulk of my final exams, I plucked up the courage to talk to her. She was sitting outside under a tree drawing.

"Hi," I said as I looked down at her.

She jumped out of her skin and looked up, immediately flipping the notepad over. "H-hi," she stuttered.

"Don't stop on my account. That was very good. Whose house was it?" I nodded towards the notepad.

"Oh, thanks," she smiled, "it's where we live now. I was going to help my parents with the garden and the decorating this summer. We haven't really had a chance since we moved in."

I nodded. "Do you mind if I sit down?"

"Go ahead."

I sat on her right, keeping some distance between us. "I haven't been here long. I moved in with my aunt and uncle about four years ago when my parents were killed in a freak accident. Well, they're actually my godparents, but I've always referred to them as my aunt and uncle."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She bit her lip and hid behind her hair slightly.

"Don't apologise. It could've happened to anyone. It was a bad storm and they got trapped under a tree in the car. It fell as they drove under it. They weren't the only people to die that night." It hadn't taken me long to accept their deaths. I knew it was an accident and the fact that they died together made me feel better. If one had died, the other would've been so emotionally distraught that they would've followed soon after.

"That was all over the news for a week or so."

I nodded and changed the subject. "You should pursue a career in interior design and landscaping. You could make a fortune with your talent."

"You really think so? My Dad has said it over and over again, but I wasn't sure if he was just being modest."

"I don't think so. I know so. My mother used to do up houses for a low price and sell them for about ten to a hundred times what she bought them for."

She nodded. "I have been trying to find something I could pursue, otherwise I would have to do a boring, low-pay office job. And that would drive me nuts."

I laughed. "I'm planning to follow in my father's footsteps and become a doctor. I don't think I've ever wanted to do anything else."

"Good luck with your exams if I don't see you beforehand."

"Thank you. I'm sure I will see you soon." I glanced at my watch. "I better hurry I have an exam in ten minutes."

And with that I jumped up and headed towards the exam hall without looking back.

Esme POV

I stared after him. _God he has a nice arse._ I shook myself and gathered up my books and headed to my next class.

I sat through art in a daze, glad it didn't require much brainpower. There was a guy sitting opposite me that had recently come back to school after having his appendix out, so I heard. His name was Charles Evenson and he was desperately trying to hit on me. I tried my best to blank him out, but he kept grabbing my attention. Not that I was complaining. He seemed like a nice guy and he was the regular good-looking-very-sporty kinda guy.

I was the last out of the classroom and Charles took the opportunity to get my full attention by blocking the door.

"It's Esme, right?"

I nodded.

"Well, I was wondering if you would like to go out sometime."

"Err… Sure, why not." I smiled.

"How about Saturday? We could go to the cinema."

"Sounds good. I really have to go, my Dad will be wondering where I am."

He moved and I squeezed out the door. Apparently he didn't seem to know much about personal space.

As I started the car, I caught a glimpse of him. He was watching me.

I sighed. _What am I getting myself into?_

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	3. Chapter 3

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**Happy reading :D**

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Chapter 3

Esme POV

I whimpered as Charles sent another blow to my ribs. At first he had seemed ok, but recently he had become a raging alcoholic, taking out any anger on me. How I'd been able to survive this relationship for nearly five years, I don't know.

I had always been one to voice anything I saw that I felt was wrong, but since Charles threatened me if I told anyone, I couldn't find the courage. He tried to keep any mark he left on my torso, so it wouldn't show, but if he caught my face I had to make up excuses, which was fairly easy seeing as I am so clumsy.

I hissed as he shoved me into the car and I caught my ankle in the door. He was the most drunk I had ever seen him and I was scared for my life, but I daren't try and stop him.

My seatbelt pressed onto the bruises as he sped down the road away from his parent's house. They didn't care about the monster that their son was. I didn't know where he was taking me, but I hoped it wasn't somewhere secluded. I glanced across at the speedometer.

_140 mph?_

"Charles, please stop! You're scaring me!"

He grunted in response. Recently he'd been into drugs and right now he seemed a little paranoid. He had been convinced for a week that I was seeing someone else behind his back and had declared as he hit me earlier that he was going to show me a lesson "once and for all".

He turned onto the motorway and swerved in among the cars repeatedly before turning off and rejoining the flow of traffic back towards town. Instead of going the same way as the traffic, he drove towards it.

I shut my eyes out of pure terror. The last thing I heard was the screech of brakes.

Carlisle POV

"Ok team. We have a multiple car pile-up coming in. There are two main casualties and about five minor injuries. Dr. Cullen, I want you to help with the two main priorities," the clinical lead, and my mentor, said.

I was fresh out of med school and loving the work. I had so far shown an excellence parallel to the skill my father had as a doctor.

We waited just inside the doors to the emergency department for the arrivals. The first was a gentleman in his late thirties. The second was a female in her early twenties. _Oh my goodness. It's Esme!_

I froze. I had to treat her, but I couldn't.

"Come on Cullen!"

I shook myself mentally and immediately went to work. First priority was to re-inflate her right lung and stabilise her so she could be sent for a scan to check for any head or spinal injuries.

The scans came back clear, so I set to work setting her left leg in a cast and strapping up the three broken ribs she had.

I turned to my mentor. "Can I stay with her? She's a friend and my shift ends in five minutes."

"I suppose. Your shift would've ended by the time you've taken her upstairs."

"Thank you, sir." I nodded before escorting Esme upstairs to the ward.

After half an hour, Esme stirred. She looked awfully confused.

"Esme, you're in hospital."

"Carlisle?" She asked, her eyes widening as her vision cleared.

"Yeah. Do you remember what happened?"

"Well, when you left, Charles Evenson started hitting on me. He seemed ok at first, taking me out and trying to buy me with flowers etc. Anyway, as soon as we left school he became an alcoholic and got involved in drugs," she paused and took a deep, shaky breath, wincing because of her ribs.

"Do you want some more pain medication?" I sat forward in my chair.

She shook her head. "He would take his anger out on me. He'd hit me." Her voice was shaky now.

I took her hand. She flinched at first before realising that I wasn't going to hurt her. "Why didn't you tell someone?" I asked quietly.

"He threatened me. Said he'd hurt my family." She took another breath. "Today he was drunk and high. Decided to beat me up and drive the wrong way down the motorway. I don't remember after that. I had my eyes shut." She gave way to the tears that had built up.

I took my own shaky breath. _How could a man treat such a kind and selfless woman that way?_

I looked up at her. "Did he give you any other injuries?" I searched her tear filled eyes.

She took a couple of short jerky breaths as she sobbed. "He tried to rape me."

I stared at her. "That son of a bitch," I muttered.

"He's gonna find out now. He'll come after me!"

I sat on the edge of the bed and squeezed her hand, trying to keep my voice even. "He can't, Esme. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The car that crashed into the one you were in completely smashed up the driver's side of the car. You're safe."

Her shoulders shuddered as she let out a large sigh. She looked up at me. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." I smiled at her as my own tears spilled over.

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	4. Chapter 4

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**This is the last chapter I'm going to upload today, so add me to story/author alert and I should update either on Friday or some point at the weekend.**

**Happy reading!**

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Chapter 4

Esme POV

"What time do you want me to come and get you?" Carlisle asked as he turned into a parking space at the front of the interior design shop my mother had help me set up.

"About half five. Call me if you're gonna be any later," I said as I grabbed my crutches and got out of the car. I'd had the cast removed a couple of days ago, but seeing as my leg was a little unstable still they decided to keep me on the crutches.

Carlisle had been fantastic. He'd helped me since I'd been discharged, seeing as my bruised and broken ribs had stopped me from doing simple things like filling the washing machine, or lifting shopping bags. He had offered to drop me off and pick me up from work and fitted his shifts around me. I had insisted that he didn't need to but he'd said he wanted to, so I didn't argue.

I watched him leave before grabbing a folder of my newest project and sitting down next to the till. I made orders for supplies and phoned the owners of the property to discuss a final meeting date to look over the final plans.

At half nine, Angela walked through the door clutching some designs I'd asked her to modify. She'd always been good at architectural things and had been project manager on the three previous assignments due to me being an invalid.

"I made minor changes to some things, as you can see." She pointed towards where she'd pencilled in ideas for a slight extension to a kitchen with a glass wall, creating an open feel.

"It looks good. If anything, it benefits the house. If you look at the exterior design, you can hardly see the extension. Looks natural. Where'd I be without you?"

"Sitting in a dark corner in your flat trying to avoid the bailiffs coming round to collect all your money."

I laughed. "True."

Carlisle POV

It was a rather slow day. A child with a bead in his ear, a cheerleading stunt gone wrong and a couple of people with torn ligaments.

"Right," my mentor said as he dumped a pile of folders on the desk in front of me as I sat talking to the receptionist. "I know it's awful, but it's gotta be done."

I sighed and started going through the pile, glancing at the clock every now and again.

Finally five o'clock rolled around and I could escape the bedlam of Friday night emergencies.

As I pulled up at the shop I noticed I was ten minutes early. I walked in to find Esme bent over her laptop typing furiously, a frown of concentration on her face. She flicked a pen between two of her fingers on her right hand occasionally.

"We're closed. Opening times are on the door," she said as she heard the door open.

"It's me. Sorry that I'm a little early. I had paperwork for the last two hours and I needed to get out of the hospital before the usual Friday night casualties started rolling in."

"Sorry. I should've known it was you. I've been working on this for the past hour." She pointed briefly at the screen.

I went and leant on the desk next to her. "What is 'this' exactly?"

"Just an electronic copy of notes and stuff. New clients contact numbers etcetera."

I looked over to her right and found the desk littered with crisp bags and chocolate bar wrappers. "Esme, have you been eating properly?"

"Define 'properly' for me." She looked up at me as she shut the laptop and stuffed it in its case.

I sighed. "I'm taking you out to dinner. Now," I said, grabbing the laptop case and her bag. "Come on." I nodded towards the door.

She stared blankly at me before grabbing her crutches and limping out the door. I locked it after us and chucked the bags into the boot of the car.

"So where do you want to go?" I asked as I slid into the car.

"I'm not really bothered. To be honest, I haven't actually eaten properly for two weeks."

I sighed and shook my head as I pulled into the car park of a small Italian restaurant.

I helped her out of the car and up the two small steps to the door of the restaurant. The place was practically empty. We were sat in a quiet corner, away from other people.

"So, you've heard all about me in the past few weeks, seeing as you've been at my flat pretty much twenty-four seven. Let's hear about you," she said after we'd ordered.

"Well, as you know, my parents were killed in an accident a few years back, so I lived with my aunt and uncle. I used to live in Forks, where my parents house still stands, but is in need of a little TLC. I plan to move back there at some point. I have never been in a relationship, but have attracted a lot of attention, as you probably guessed from when we were at school."

She laughed, making me grateful I was sitting down. She made me weak at the knees. "I practically died when you looked at me when you walked into the cafeteria at lunch on that first day!" She said.

"That's one of my many qualities." I laughed.

"Oh really?"

I nodded. "I'm also a pretty good doctor so far, apparently. I rarely drink, love comedies such as Friends and Scrubs. I've seen my fair share of romance films."

She smiled. "Have you ever cried at any films?"

I sighed. "I always cry at Black Beauty and The Notebook."

"Same here. I also cried when I saw Marley and Me. It's funny, sad and really adorable all at once."

I nodded. "I watched with my cousin Maggie. We were both in tears."

"What's the scariest film you've ever watched? I think Paranormal Activity."

"That was terrifying! However, I do think High School Musical is almost equal on a terror level. I really do hate Maggie sometimes. She's fifteen if you're wondering."

"Fifteen. And into High School Musical. Have you ever thought of getting her a psychiatrist?"

I tried to suppress my laughter enough to thank the waitress as she brought us our food.

We ate in silence and when we were brought the bill, Esme insisted on paying half.

"My treat. You're injured."

"Injured, not unable to split a food bill."

"Yes, but your bags are in the car, remember?"

"Do you always have to be right?"

I shrugged before grabbing my coat and helping Esme out of the door and into the car.

When we reached her flat, I helped her out of the car and let her lean on me whilst she grabbed her keys. When I'd set her things down on the coffee table, I asked her if she wanted to see some of my mother's drawings sometime.

"That would be good. I believe I have one of her old clients. He's intent on stressing me to death. He's so hard to please. Would she mind?"

"I don't think so. She'd be happy. I'm sure." I smiled before giving her a quick hug. "I'll pop round with her folders tomorrow. Promise you'll start eating properly."

She sighed before glancing up at me and nodding. "I promise."

"Goodnight Esme."

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	5. Chapter 5

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**Here's the next chapter...**

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Chapter 5

Esme POV

I sighed as I slid stiffly out of bed. My leg felt a little sore, but not more than when I'd fallen out of the tree when I had just turned sixteen. I decided to just use one of the crutches and hobbled into the kitchen to get painkillers and some breakfast.

I sat in front of the TV watching Saturday morning cartoons like I used to as a kid eating my breakfast. After about twenty minutes, there was a knock on the door. I glanced at the clock. _It's half eleven? _I shrugged and pulled myself off the sofa before walking to the door, limping slightly. I pulled open the door. And guess who was standing there?

Carlisle.

And I was still wearing my purple shorts and cami top pyjamas, my hair sticking up at odd angles. I flushed bright red as he looked at my appearance.

"Sorry," he mumbled, looking down at the floor, "I thought you'd be awake."

"Oh, I was awake. I've been sat in front of the TV for the past twenty minutes."

He nodded. "Decided to lose one of the crutches?"

I nodded, stepping aside to let him in. "Do you want a drink?"

"Just some orange juice if you have any. I've already had my morning coffee fix."

I walked into the kitchen and reached up to grab a glass from the shelf in the cupboard. I was suddenly ungrateful for the open plan kitchen as I could feel his eyes on my back. Not that I minded. I liked him. I mean, really liked him.

"Here you go," I said as I set the drink down on the coffee table. "I'm just going to go and get changed."

"Thank you." He smiled at me, making my stomach flutter.

As soon as I was in my room, I threw open the doors of the wardrobe and grabbed a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. I pulled them on quickly and dragged a brush through my hair. I hurriedly brushed my teeth in the bathroom before joining Carlisle in front of the TV.

"So," I said as I sat down on the other end of the sofa from him.

"Right. I have two of her folders. These are the most successful projects she designed, earning her near to one million. Each. And of course there are designs for a client in this folder as well. I thought I better bring this one along."

"Wow. She must've had some amazing designs."

"You can see for yourself. This first folder is of the two previous properties that your hard to please customer owned as well as the two of her projects that I mentioned. He always had a colour from a previous property in each room to add a little colour to the white walls. And there is also two properties that she owned and sold on." He explained as he pointed to various colour sketches.

"Only one wall with colour and a mirror opposite. Creates an illusion of space," I commented.

We spent a good hour flicking through the folder. I made notes and did some simple sketches.

Whilst I finished with the first folder, Carlisle was flicking through the other folder he'd brought along.

"In this folder are the designs for the house in Forks. She only did the exterior of the house before the accident. Makes it a completely blank canvas really."

I looked up. "It's a shame she didn't get to do that. From this folder I can tell it would've been amazing."

He shook his head. "She only had ideas for half the house. To be honest, it's more a mansion. Anyway, half the things she came up with didn't fit the character of the house. She was all for modern houses. This house is about a hundred years old. She wasn't sure how to enhance the character of the property, whilst still modernising it." He placed the folder on the cushion between us.

I flicked through the limited pages. "There's barely anything in here. Maybe she ran out of inspiration."

"Who knows?" He shrugged.

"Would you like some lunch?" I asked, looking at the clock.

"That would be wonderful." He smiled again, making me glad that I was currently sitting down. _Oh good God._

I wandered into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of cans of coke and made a quick sandwich.

"I only have ham at the moment."

"That's fine."

As we ate, I thought over my feelings for Carlisle. I wondered if he felt the same. And thought over a million different ways to tell him, before I decided to just say it.

"This may sound silly," I blushed slightly.

"Hmm," he encouraged me to go on.

"But I think I love you, Carlisle Cullen." I met his eyes and then looked down, blushing again.

"Esme, look at me," he said quietly.

I looked up to meet his eyes, which were inches away from my own.

"I don't think it's silly." He sighed, "I think I love you too." His breath caressed my face.

I shuffled forward slightly and brought my lips to his hesitantly. He returned the kiss and shuffled towards me so that our knees were touching.

"Oh my God, sorry!" I said, breaking the kiss. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologising?" He asked, taking my hand and rubbing circles on the back of it with his thumb to try and stop me shaking.

"I don't know," I sighed.

"You haven't done anything wrong, Esme." He put an arm around me and I leant against his shoulder, wrapping my arms around his waist.

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Chapter 5


	6. Chapter 6

**Here's the next chapter! TeamCarlisleandEsme8 - your guess was close! Thank you all for the kind reviews - I'm glad you're enjoying the story :D**

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Chapter 6

Carlisle POV

I glanced at my watch. In exactly two minutes I would be able to leave and go and see Esme. We must've been dating for about seven months by now.

It was a slow relationship, mainly because she'd had her confidence shattered by Charles. Some things I did really spooked her.

About a month ago, I was round hers and she walked into the kitchen just as I'd turned around to put away a knife that I had just cleaned. She had fallen against the wall and had a panic attack before passing out. To be honest, it scared the shit out of me.

I jolted out of my nightmarish daydream. One more minute. I glanced at the last of my pile of paperwork before signing it and shoving it into a filing cabinet. I grabbed my keys and headed out the door before I could be called into anything else. I was currently amazing the senior doctors with my ability to do anything asked of me perfectly. I had overheard that I had been saving patients at an "alarming rate".

I glanced at my watch again when I stopped at a set of traffic lights. I'd promised that I'd cook Esme dinner. Hopefully I wouldn't get stuck in traffic.

As I pulled up at Esme's flat I thought about asking her to help me renovate my parents' house. She'd love the idea. A weekend away would do both of us good. It would probably have to wait though. Although I was working well, I still had a couple of rotations in my training to do at the hospital, but that wouldn't take too long I suppose. I pulled out my keys and let myself in, only to be greeted by the sound of Esme screaming.

I ran towards where I thought she was. She was on her bed, screaming in her sleep. I flicked the main light on and walked to the side of the bed.

"Esme, wake up Honey." I put my hand on her shoulder and she jolted awake and leapt across to the other side of the bed and started shaking. "Another dream?"

She nodded tearfully. "Yeah. I'm sorry Carlisle."

I walked around to the other side of the bed and pulled her into a hug. "No need to apologise. I understand - you're gonna be jumpy when you wake from one of these dreams." I sighed and rubbed her back. "What I don't understand is why you are suddenly having these dreams again. I thought they'd pretty much stopped."

"I don't know. I just wish that they'd stop," she sobbed.

"I know. What do you want for dinner?" I asked when she'd calmed down.

"I don't know. Pasta or something. In honestly not that hungry."

"Ok. I'll see what I can do." I kissed the top of her head before walking through to the kitchen to start searching through the cupboards.

Esme POV

Charles came up behind me as I cut a slice of bread in the kitchen. He kicked my legs from underneath me and grabbed the knife from where I'd left it on the chopping board. He glared at me with dark, menacing eyes before throwing it towards my head and missing. It struck my shoulder and I screamed in pain. He then grabbed the tops of my arms and pinned me to the floor, pushing my skirt up with his knee. I screamed at him to stop, but he didn't seem to hear me...

I woke to find Carlisle staring worriedly at me. I leapt away across the bed as the dream was still pretty vivid in my mind. After a few seconds, I gathered a sense of my surroundings. _Just a dream…just a dream…_

Whilst Carlisle cooked dinner, I sat in front of the TV thinking about how I could stop the dreams all together. Carlisle seemed to make the dreams go away for a little while after he'd been round. That'd have to be it. I walked into the kitchen to find Carlisle dishing up pasta and red pesto.

"You ok now?" He asked as he put the pan in the sink.

"Yeah. I've had a thought." I paused, thinking of how to say it as I grabbed my plate and sat down at the small kitchen table. "Every time you have been around, the dreams ease off."

"Hmm," he said, anticipating my request. "You sure you want me to stay?"

"Of course I'm sure. If it'll stop the dreams then I can get on with life. I've been so tired."

"If you're sure I'll stay as long as you want me too."

"Thank you."

"It's because I'm unbelievably in love with you," he said before kissing me. "I also have a question for you."

"Ok…"

"How about you help me renovate my parents' house? It'll be a big project, but I'm sure you'll manage."

"Oh my God, yes! I'd love to." I bounced slightly in my seat.

"Calm down, I haven't just asked you to marry me!" He laughed, before whispering, "yet."

"Carlisle Cullen, did you just say 'yet'?" I stared open-mouthed at him as he grinned mischievously.

"Maybe, maybe not. You'll have to wait and see Miss Platt." He flashed his teeth at me as he got up to put our plates in the sink, making me melt like he'd done on the first day I'd seen him.

"I'm gonna pop home to get some clothes. Will you be ok while I'm gone?" He asked as he walked across the kitchen.

I didn't want him to go. "I should be. I'll probably be asleep when you get back. I'll leave a light on."

"Ok, I'll be twenty minutes tops." He kissed me before grabbing his keys and leaving.

I sighed before dumping the remainder of my drink in the sink and heading to bed.

I woke when Carlisle opened the bedroom door. He dumped a bag in the corner by the wardrobe and slipped into bed next to me. I immediately scooted closer to him and snuggled into his chest, resting my forehead against his shoulder with a contented sigh.

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**Thoughts and guesses on the next chapter? :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's the next chapter! Happy reading! (Sorry about the delay, I've not been doing well at school, had a virus on my laptop (therefore no internet) and have been drowning in my English coursework :L**

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Chapter 7

Carlisle POV

I didn't want to leave her, but there was no way I was gonna sleep in my work clothes. Besides, I needed clothes for tomorrow anyway.

When I got to my flat, I didn't bother to park properly. I grabbed some jeans for tomorrow and something to sleep in. The roads were deserted as I drove across town again.

When I walked in, Esme had left the living room light on. I quickly changed as I didn't want to wake her and shut the light off. The bedroom door squeaked when I opened it and Esme stirred. I dumped my bag in the corner next to the wardrobe. When I slipped into bed, Esme immediately leant into my chest with a contented sigh.

I laughed once. "Happy now, Honey?"

"Now that you're here. I was beginning to feel a little lonely," she said into my shoulder.

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer, drawing a deep breath as I put my face in her hair.

When I woke up at half eight the following morning, we were still in the same position. Esme snored softly as she pressed her face into my chest. I moved slightly to allow her some more air. She moaned a little in protest before settling back down.

I watched her sleep for about half an hour. She looked very childlike when she slept. It reminded me of when I'd first set eyes on her.

At ten past nine her eyes fluttered open. A look of confusion was on her face for a split second before she smiled slightly.

"Morning," I said as I kissed her forehead.

"Don't you have work?" She asked, rolling over to look at the time on her phone.

"No, I've got the day off. And I'm hoping to spend it with you."

She smiled. "Good. I wasn't entirely sure that I'd actually let you go."

"And I'd probably be murdered for being late. Not sure that you would be a good enough excuse," I laughed. "No bad dreams last night?"

"None whatsoever. I dreamt about you instead." A wicked smile played on her lips.

"And you're not going to tell me about it." I pouted slightly.

"No. Don't do that! You know I can't resist you when you do that." She laughed, "I'm still not telling you though."

I thought for a moment before moving quickly so I was kneeling over her with my hands either side of the tops of her arms. I leant in so I was about an inch from her face. "How about now?"

"Umm...err…maybe," she stuttered.

I brushed my lips against her jaw lightly. "Now?"

She managed to wiggle out and shoved against my shoulders and I moved. I didn't want to make her uncomfortable.

She took the chance to leap from the bed and run towards the bathroom, giggling. "I'm still not telling!"

I sighed and lay down again. The next thing I know, Esme had returned and straddled me, pinning my arms to my sides.

"Look who's trapped now," she said sweetly as she smiled. "I may tell you later. You'll have to be patient."

"Fine. Now let me go, please."

"In a minute." She leant down and kissed me.

I put my hands on her shoulders and then slid them down her back to rest on her waist. She shuddered as I did so and sighed into my mouth. I took that chance to regain some control. I managed to move so I was sitting up and I pulled Esme onto my lap. "If I get that every morning I'm gonna stay more often," I muttered against her lips.

She laughed and broke the kiss, leaning her forehead against mine. "Maybe you will. I think it will be good enough payment to you."

I frowned. "Payment for what?"

"Saving my life, helping me back on my feet, being there for me and for loving me." She counted off the reasons on her fingers.

"I don't need payment. The fact that you love me back is payment enough." I rubbed my nose against hers, "what do you want for breakfast?"

"I want you to kiss me again."

I laughed. "Seriously, Esme. What do you want?"

"I'm not really hungry. I think it's too hot. I felt ill yesterday when I ate breakfast."

I nodded. It was an unusually warm June for Seattle. "We can grab something later. How about we go out to Forks and have a look around the house?"

The look on her face made my day. "Really?"

"I don't think I could lie to you Esme. You know me far too well."

She laughed. "Likewise."

"Ok then. Get dressed and meet me in the car." I grabbed my clothes as I walked out the door to change in the bathroom.

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Esme POV

After about half an hour in the car, I decided to tell him about my dream.

"I dreamt of our wedding day. For about the tenth time."

"I dreamt about you. It was just your face repeatedly - sweet and smiling."

I laughed. "Really? No images of the terror on my face that time in the kitchen or the other times when I had panic attacks?"

"Absolutely none. I was also watching you sleep this morning. Reminded me of when I first met you."

"Really?" I snorted, "I didn't give you any injuries last night did I?"

"Not that I know of." He looked at me out of the corner of his eye.

"When it's that hot I generally sleep across the whole bed. And I've never been able to sleep in one position."

He laughed. "We didn't actually move all night."

"That's definitely not normal." I laughed with him.

"No, everyone else is strange. We're perfectly normal."

"One way to look at it, I suppose."

We continued the journey in silence, stopping briefly for breakfast. I stared out the window as trees and fields passed by in a green blur. I woke out of my little dreamless daydream when we turned off the main road and started travelling down a long winding drive. At the end stood the house. It was a lot grander than the drawings.

"It's a lot more impressive in the flesh," I said as I got out of the car.

"I'm not entirely sure it should be personified."

"Shut it. Since when do you know that houses don't have feelings?" I scowled at him.

"You are funny Esme. But I do agree with you. I bet it could tell some amazing stories if it were able to talk." He slipped his arm around my waist as we looked over the exterior of the house.

"It can talk. You just have to learn to listen. Look for things inside and out that may tell a story and let your imagination do the rest. For example, above the front door, where the security light is, that was where a bell was hung to call the children to dinner from wherever they were in the grounds."

"How do you know that?"

"Looked it up. It's also a fairly easy to guess. My parents' house has one. We actually found the bell in the attic. The land was sold before we bought the house though. Some kind of divorce agreement - one got the house, the other the land, and they both decided to sell."

"Shall we go in?" He pulled a key out of his pocket.

"Yeah. It looks like it's going to rain. Not that I mind, but I didn't bring a coat."

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**Thoughts?**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Carlisle POV

"Where are you?" I asked as I walked through the front door at half past ten.

"Up here!" Esme shouted from the first floor.

I found her in one of the rooms with lilac paint all over her arms as she finished the last wall.

"It looks good. Angela gone?"

"Yeah, she's got her niece tonight, so she had to go. How was the hospital? They let you have a couple of days off next week to move the furniture in?"

"Nothing happened, to be honest. Just loads of paperwork. I have the weekend and Monday off."

"Good." She smiled as I bent down to kiss her.

She went a little limp in my arms. "Esme?" I asked worriedly.

"I'm fine. Must be the paint fumes. And the fact that you take me breath away," she giggled.

"Let's go downstairs, the fumes seem to have gone straight to your head." I scooped her up in my arms and set her on the sofa downstairs. Luckily, the kitchen had been fitted first so I could grab her a drink.

"Thanks," she muttered as she took the glass from me.

"How many rooms have you got left to do?"

"Just one. Then the furniture can go in and the house is finished. Do you think she would be appreciative of the work that's been done?"

She was referring to my mother. "She would be over the moon. And very impressed."

"I kept all her original ideas that she'd put in the folder but tweaked them to suit the house a little more and added my own stuff."

"When you do the next room, open a window or something. I don't want to walk in to find you passed out on the floor."

"Ok." She got up and walked over to where I was sat in an armchair and sat on my lap. The furniture we had was only temporary until we'd done the decorating.

"You ok?" I asked, rubbing her back. She usually only sat on my lap if I had to leave or if she felt like being a nuisance.

"I feel a bit ill." She curled up against my chest and wrapped her arms around her stomach and leant her head on my shoulder. "Not surprising considering it's the time of the month and I've been in a house full of paint fumes all day."

I pulled her closer to me and brushed the hair off of her face and neck. She was boiling hot even though she was shivering slightly. "Do you want me to take you up to bed and bring you some paracetamol?"

She moved her head to look up at me. "If you wouldn't mind, thank you."

"Ok. Come on then." I scooped her up and took her up to our room. Luckily it was the first to be decorated and was the only room with the final pieces of furniture in it. I lay her gently on the bed. "I'll be back in a second."

"Hmpf," was all that I got out of her.

She rarely had period pains, but when she did get them they all but killed her. She never complained though. _"Bless her" as my mother would say._

When I returned, she had fallen asleep curled up on her side. I put the pills on the bedside table before reluctantly waking her up.

"You'll be more comfortable. Trust me."

She got changed, took the painkillers and fell back into bed. I went downstairs and locked the front and back doors before switching the lights off. On my way back upstairs, I opened the windows in the room Esme had painted today to try and get rid of some of the paint fumes.

She was lying on her left side when I walked back into our room. I changed quickly, throwing my clothes into the washing basket in the en suite. I slid into bed and lay behind Esme, my chest pressing on her back. I draped my right arm across her hip and let my hand rest on hers.

She threaded her fingers through mine. "Goodnight. I love you."

I could've sworn she was asleep. "Goodnight. I love you too, more than you can ever comprehend." I kissed her neck before drifting into a dreamless sleep.

Esme POV

Carlisle was so sweet. He offered to do anything and everything, which left me time to feel sorry for myself, be very hormonal and mope around. I accidentally bit Angela's head off, but thankfully she knew why I was being such a bitch.

The guys delivering the furniture were helpful, carrying the furniture to the correct rooms instead of leaving it to us. One of them made eyes at me, but didn't look at me again when Carlisle wrapped his arms protectively around my waist and kissed my neck. Garrett, Seth and Carlisle's uncle, Liam, helped us move the furniture the same day, which meant I had two whole days to do absolutely nothing with Carlisle.

On Tuesday evening, consequently Valentine's Day, I found a trail of red rose petals on the floor when I got home from work. I smiled to myself as I followed the trail through the kitchen and outside onto the patio. Sitting on the garden swing under the nearest tree was Carlisle.

"Carlisle, what's this?" I asked as I walked across the garden.

He smirked slightly. "Well, you've been working really hard to get the house finished and I thought I'd give you a little surprise."

I smiled back at him and sat down next to him. He raised his arm and I leant against his shoulder.

"Isn't it a bit cold to be sat out here?" I asked after a minute or so.

He shrugged his shoulders. "It's worth it for the view."

I had to agree. There were so many stars out tonight and it was very quiet, but when I looked up at Carlisle, he was staring at me. I smiled at him before resuming my position.

After a while, the gentle rising and falling of Carlisle's chest started to lull me to sleep. I came back to earth when I'd realised that Carlisle had moved and was kneeling on one knee in front of me. My heart was in my mouth as he produced a ring.

It was a small silver ring with a small central diamond that had three smaller diamonds sitting either side of it in a triangular shape. I looked up to find him looking at me expectantly while I gawped.

"Will you marry me, Esme?"

I stared at him for a few seconds before I found my voice. "Yes!" I whispered before I jumped into his arms and knocked him backwards onto the grass. He rolled us over so he was on top and leant down to kiss me.

"I had a feeling you'd say that." He laughed when we surfaced for air.

I sat up. "Telling my mother will be fun. She thinks that people shouldn't get married until they're nearly thirty."

"Don't worry about it. I was brought up impeccably - I went and asked your father first. And of course your mother was there," he said as he helped me to my feet.

"Nosy old bat."

He laughed and pulled the ring out of the box before sliding it onto my finger. It was a perfect fit.

I looked at the ring on my finger. "Where did you get this?"

"My mother gave it to me. Told me to make sure that I take good care of whoever I gave it to. She also told me to tell that person daily that I love them," he told me as we walked back into the house.

"Well, number one you do really well and have done that since before we started going out. Number two, I'm pretty sure we do already."

"We can up the stakes," he said before kissing me.

"What do you mean?" I asked as he broke the kiss.

"I love you."

"I love you too, but you still haven't answered my question."

"I did. I told you that I love you twice in one day."

I pushed him back into the wall next to the door. "Well, aren't you clever?" I asked before stretching up on tip toes to touch my lips to his.

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**Link for the ring is on my profile :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**I'm sorry for not being able to get this up sooner! Damn A-Levels! I had written this chapter a while ago like with many of the other chapters that I've posted or have yet to post, but every time I proof read them, I end up rewriting almost the whole chapter. Being a perfectionist isn't much fun when it comes to writing FF!**

**Anyway, this is a big chapter - big in length as well as storyline!**

**Have fun reading!**

**Disclaimer (in case a few of you have forgotten) - It's in the first authors note in Chapter 1 because I keep forgetting about it :L:L:L**

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Chapter 9

Carlisle POV

"You'll be fine," Garrett said as he straightened his tie. "Trust me. My brother was worse than you and he doesn't do the whole stand-up-and-talk-in-front-of-other-people thing and he was absolutely fine."

"I'm not a quivering wreck. I just have butterflies, like the ones you get before exam results," I said.

"Or before asking your girlfriend to marry you," Seth said.

"What? You and Mia?" Garrett asked.

"I'm planning to ask her later today if I can pluck up the courage to do it."

"Congrats," Garrett nodded.

"Right," I said as I glanced quickly at my reflection, "let's get this show on the road."

On our way to the church, the knot in my stomach got worse. All my friends and family were there, except my relatives in England as they could not make it over.

The church was amazing. Everywhere possible there were small bunches of lilac flowers – Esme's favourite colour.

Everyone seemed bright and cheerful and a few family friends either gave me small smiles or understanding looks as they followed their wives or girlfriends around, but I was sure me and Esme would be different.

When I saw Esme, I felt a little underdressed. She was wearing a white, floor length, strapless dress that seemed to be corseted. Across the bust of the dress were small white beads that caught the light whenever she moved. Her wavy hair had been pulled off of her face to the crown of her head and the curls hung down her back and wide smile spread across her face. She looked absolutely perfect. My black tux couldn't live up to that, but I don't think she'd care if I was wearing jeans to be honest.

As we said our vows, I kept thinking over and over _this isn't real…this is a dream and I'm going to wake up any minute now. _Esme's voice cracked on "I do", making me smile as I squeezed her hand in reassurance. When it was my turn, I had to swallow a very large lump that had formed in my throat as I realised it was very nearly official.

As we kissed, Garrett let out a wolf whistle and Seth and a few of my other friends whooped. Esme laughed quietly at my crazy friends before we walked out of the church hand in hand as husband and wife.

Esme POV

"Can you still breathe?" Kate asked as she tightened the corset on my dress.

"Yeah." My wonderfully talented twenty year old sister had designed the dress and had painstakingly sewn on the beads by hand.

"Ok, I'm done." She said as she straightened up. God I looked amazing.

"Carlisle's gonna be made up when he sees you!" Angela all but jumped in the air happily. Thankfully her heels stopped her from doing so. Angela and Kate were my only two bridesmaids and were both wearing cream Greek style dresses with beads wrapped around the waist.

"He sure is." My father's voice sounded from the doorway. "You look beautiful Esme." He was a little choked up. On the other hand, my mother didn't give a shit. She'd always favoured Kate because she was outgoing and wouldn't question anything asked of her. I didn't envy Kate, but her life had been a little easier.

"Thank you. Please don't cry." I smiled at him.

"I'll try."

I took his arm and let him lead me out to the car. The drive to the church was short, thankfully. My lungs would only hold up for so long with the corset. Maybe Kate had made it a little tight. _I'll get her to loosen it a little later._

Carlisle's face when he saw me was priceless. A smile that mirrored mine spread slowly across his face. Happiness didn't begin to describe how we must've looked and felt.

Carlisle's hand squeezed mine reassuringly when my voice broke when I realised after I said those two words, Carlisle would e my husband.

As I kissed him, I wondered why I had felt sick this morning. There was no need, apart from Garrett, Seth and various others making complete fools of themselves and embarrassing me in front of everyone as Carlisle kissed me. I'd get them back later.

"Have a good time and a safe journey," Dad said as he gave me a quick hug.

"We will."

"And you," he pointed at Carlisle, "take care of my daughter. I know you will, I'm just making sure."

"Of course I will, Ed."

I walked up to my mother. "At least be happy for me."

"I am. Charles seemed just as nice."

I flinched at the mention of his name and she noticed.

"Tell me," she whispered.

"I don't want to talk about it, but you better know. He hit me and... And tried to, err... umm... Rape me. He was the reason I ended up in hospital last year," I whispered, biting my lip.

Her hand flew to her mouth. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"He gave death threats. Not only my life, but yours, Dad's and Kate's."

"I should have noticed. I'm sorry." She hugged me.

"Don't be sorry. He was a psycho and hid it well." I was glad my rocky relationship with her had moved in the right direction.

"Enjoy yourself."

I nodded. "We will."

"I mean it. I want grandkids." She laughed for what must be the first time in months. She always seemed so miserable whenever I had seen her. Maybe I didn't call often enough.

Kate practically strangled me with a hug. "Enjoy yourselves. I mean, when you live in Forks who knows when you're gonna see the sun?"

I laughed. "You know I don't mind the rain."

"And make sure you get him wound tighter around your little finger," she whispered before purring and walking away to talk to Garrett. Trust her to bring up my sex life. She was supposed to be house-sitting for us and Garrett had asked Carlisle if we had anyone and, completely forgetting about Kate, he said we needed someone. Those two were definitely hiding something. I shook my head before joining Carlisle in the car.

"Well Mrs. Cullen, are you ready to go?"

"Of course. Where are we going?" I asked as I put my seatbelt on.

"Shall I tell her, shant I?" He tapped a finger on his chin.

I shoved his arm.

"Ok, ok! We're going to a private island that my parents owned. I was thinking that it would be an ideal wedding gift. How about we call it Isle Esme?"

I gawped at him. "You're joking? I don't think I have anything to give you. Sorry about that."

He took my hand. "You've given me your heart. That's more than enough."

Carlisle POV

I glanced across at Esme. She'd fallen asleep with her head on the window. I looked at the wedding band on my left hand. _This can't be real. _

She didn't wake when we stopped at the docks.

"Esme, Honey."

She groaned before opening her eyes. "We there yet?"

"No. We have a short boat ride. I wouldn't have woken you if I could get you out the car."

"Alright. I forgive you. Anyway, I can sleep later."

"Come on then." I nudged her before I got out of the car to grab our bags. I threw the bags onto the small boat that my father had taught me to sail when I was a kid. I put my hands on Esme's waist and I lifted her into the boat.

"So, how long are we going to be on the boat for?" She asked. The fresh air seemed to have woken her up a little.

"I'd say around twenty minutes. You'll like the house. My mother designed it when they got the island. I think it was a little inspiration for the house in Forks." I replied as I started up the boat and moved away from the mainland.

"Floor to ceiling windows, open plan?" She wondered.

"Yep. I think it was the last project she did. There was a small house on the island but it all but fell down a year before the accident. Anyway, if she was to let it out, which she did, a bigger house would be preferable."

"At least it doesn't sit there. I expect it brought in a great deal of income."

"Yeah. It's really only honeymooners that rented it. I decided to only let family and friends use it once it was signed in my name."

"That's something that only my wise husband could come up with." She smiled at me. "Anyone else would try and squeeze every little penny out of it."

"With my salary, we don't need to."

We carried on in silence for about 15 minutes, but it seemed like 15 seconds with Esme there.

I smiled when she snaked her arms around my waist. "How long until I get to see our island?" She asked

"About five minutes. You can see it there." I pointed at the horizon before looking down at her. The sun highlighted a slight blonde tinge in her hair. I jumped when she started to lightly trace a pattern on my side with her fingers. "Stop it!" I laughed. "Do you want to swim the rest of the way?"

She scowled at me. "You wouldn't dare."

"No, I wouldn't. But if you carry on Esme Cullen, I may just crash the boat."

She smiled evilly at me. "You're ticklish." She poked my chest.

"And so are you," I said before poking her in the stomach.

She doubled over giggling. "I give! I give!"

I laughed as I pulled the boat up to the dock and hopped off and secured it. She passed me our bags before I pulled her off the boat.

"It's pretty impressive." She looked around her and beamed when she saw the house. "It does look a little like the house in Forks. Maybe she wanted a little piece of home with her whilst she was here. Or wanted a piece of the island at home."

I smiled. "Maybe," I said as I picked up our bags.

Esme walked up the path in front of me, taking everything in, whilst I took in the view of her backside. _Stop being shallow Carlisle! _One voice said. _She's my wife now, I'm allowed to look. I'm pretty sure she's gawped at my arse, _another said. I shook my head slightly as she fell into step beside me.

I looked at my watch. "It's half past seven. Do you want anything to eat?"

"No. What I wouldn't mind doing is going for a walk along the beach when it cools down."

"About nine then," I said as I threw the bags down in the porch and picked a giggling Esme up before carrying her into the house.

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**Esme's hairstyle, wedding dress and bridesmaid dress photos are on my profile**

***Insert squeals of happiness* So, do you like? Leave a review - I love reading them!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Wow, it's been a while! So so so so sorry to keep you waiting! I had to quit sixth form as I failed everything and then went on to study horse management at an agricultural college for the past two years instead, and as I was living up there, only coming home at weekends, it took up an awful lot of my time (not to mention Fanfiction was blocked by their internet so I wouldn't have been able to update you at all! Thank you so much for baring with me - love you all!**

**Anyway, as you probably know I tend to write chapters in advance and then edit each individually before they even come near the Fanfiction website and with this chapter, it took ages for me to edit it to make it feel right. Parts of it still seem pretty shite to me, but it's better than the first draft. It's also the first lemon I have written, so let me know any improvements I can make to it etc (either in a review or by dropping me a PM - I don't mind)**

**I hope to upload a few more chapters in the coming weeks - hopefully once I'm settled at uni in September I'll be able to carry on (will be studying equine therapy and after 3 years of that will do a 1 year course in animal physio, so it's all go from the end of summer!)**

**Anyway, enjoy and don't forget to review :)**

**And excuse any typos you come across - I'm terrible for not spotting them until after I've submitted something (the amount of times I did it with my college work the past two years was painful!)**

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Esme POV

"Ready?" Carlisle asked as I pulled the last of the hair pins out of my hair.

"Yep. Let's go." I took his hand as we walked out of the door and down to the beach.

We sat on the beach with our arms around each other as we watched the sun disappear over the horizon.

"Remember that. You don't often see a sunset in Forks." Carlisle chuckled.

"True." I looked up at him and brushed his hair out of his face. "I love you."

He smiled at me. "I love you, too."

I brushed my lips against his. "Shall we go back?"

He kissed me once. "I think that may be a good idea. It's starting to get a little cold."

We walked back to the house hand in hand. As soon as we got through the door I shoved him up against the wall and crushed my lips to his. He chuckled and shoved me back gently.

"Someone's feisty."

"This is only the beginning Doctor," I whispered in his ear.

He growled in response to my teasing and swept me off of my feet and carried me through to the bedroom as I giggled. He placed me gently on the bed as he kissed me, one hand on the mattress supporting himself, the other cupping my breast.

I gasped. "Feeling a little frisky, are we Carlisle?"

He chuckled against my lips and deepened the kiss.

As he moved and began to kiss my neck, I pulled his t-shirt up in an attempt to remove it, but got completely distracted by the well sculpted muscles that sat across his stomach.

"You're like a Greek God," I whispered as I let my eyes take in his body.

"I'm _your _Greek God." He sat up and pulled the shirt off completely. "You like?"

"What's not to like about you?" I moaned as he bent to kiss my neck again whilst he teased the zip down on my dress.

As he pulled it over my head, he took in a shaky breath. "Esme you're beautiful."

I looked down at my exposed body, especially at the long scar down my right side – it was two separate scars that met in the middle. The bottom half was where Charles threw me against a glass coffee table; the top half was where they had to re-inflate my lung after Charles had tried to kill me.

He followed my gaze. "You're beautiful. Every little piece, love," he whispered in between kisses as he worked his way up the scar to find my lips again.

He ran his hand down my left side, tracing the curves. When he reached my knee, he pulled my leg up to rest on his hip. "I love you Esme," he whispered.

"I love you too, Carlisle," I sighed as I shut my eyes.

"Esme? Are you alright?"

I opened my eyes to find his nose an inch away from mine, his eyes full of worry.

"Yes," I whispered.

He shook his head. "No you're not. What are you worried about?"

I broke eye contact with him and looked across the room. "Charles," I said, my bottom lip quivering.

"You're scared. I promise that it won't be like that. I would never dream of hurting you."

I looked at him again and found his eyes brimming with tears. "I'm terrified!" I sobbed.

He sat up and pulled me with him and cradled me against his chest, rocking me gently. "You know, we don't have to if you don't want to."

My head snapped up. "I do want to. It's just a big step."

"Ok," he said, getting up and walking around the bed and into the bathroom. I heard him switch the bath taps on before reappearing.

"Come with me," he said, waving a hand towards himself. I followed him to the bathroom and went straight to the mirror to pin my hair up with my large clip.

Carlisle came and stood behind me and put his hands on my shoulders and kissed my neck, making me giggle.

"See," he said. "Told you it would be different. For one, I can make you smile."

I met his eyes in our reflection. He smiled before his gaze slipped down slightly. Self consciously, I folded my arms across my chest to cover my bra before he walked over to the bath to switch the taps off.

I heard the water move as he slid into the bath. "Esme?"

I turned to look at him.

"Don't make me sit in this bath by myself," he pouted slightly.

I smiled and slowly walked over to him. He returned my smile and rubbed my arm.

"I'll shut my eyes if you want me to," he suggested before closing his eyes and covering them with his hands in a childish way.

I laughed once and then removed the very little amount of clothing I had on and climbed into the bath and leant back against Carlisle's chest.

"You can look now," I whispered. I giggled again when he kissed the side of my neck.

"Feel more relaxed?" He asked after a few minutes.

"Mmhmm," I said, closing my eyes.

"You needn't be afraid," he said.

"I know. It's just…" My voice broke and trailed off.

"Shh. You're safe now. I won't let anyone hurt you." He rubbed the tops of my arms and rested his chin on my shoulder. "I can't stop you from tripping and hurting yourself, but I'll try."

I laughed once and moved so that I could look him in the eye. "I love you."

"I love you too. One thing we must discuss first is contraception – I have condoms with me, but do we want to be careful or maybe try for kids straight away?" He asked hesitantly, not wanting to make me panic.

I pondered what he said for a few seconds before replying, "I'm no longer on the pill. I came off of it because of some side effects. You know I want children, and it feels too soon to be thinking about it, but we're financially stable and everything so trying straight away is fine with me. I can't think of anyone better to father my children."  
I looked over my shoulder at him and smiled. He leant down and kissed me before whispering, "we better get started then."  
"Hmm," I smiled at him before leaning forward to grab a towel and climbing out of the bath before pulling the clip from my hair.

Carlisle joined me and pulled me into a hug and kissed the top of my head. "Do you still want to?"

"It's my wedding night, of course I do. Now stop asking questions!" I squealed and started laughing as he picked me up and jogged as carried me back into the bedroom. I didn't worry that my towel had fallen to the floor in the process.

I claimed his lips as he set me on the bed and crawled over the top of me. He discarded his own towel and started kissing down my neck and along my collar bone whilst gently caressing my breasts, causing me to arch upwards into his touch.  
He stroked a hand down my stomach and then stroked up both thighs before glancing up at me to test my reaction. I nodded and he gently slid a finger along my folds, making my hips buck towards him as he teased the sensitive flesh. He gently slid a finger into me and I moaned again, arching into his hand. He kissed his way back up to my ear and stroked a hand down my right hand side, pulling my leg up to rest on his hip and resting his length against my thigh.

"Carlisle…" I gasped. "Please…"

"Are you sure?" He whispered.

"Stop asking questions."

And with that, he entered me, staying at a slow pace as he gently thrusted in and out to avoid hurting me. I snaked my arms around his neck and brought his lips down to meet mine, moaning into his mouth.

"Harder, Carlisle," I gasped. I honestly had no idea what I wanted, but harder had to be better, right? "Oh my god!" I screamed as he picked up the pace.

"You're incredible, Esme," Carlisle groaned.

I could feel pressure building in my core, becoming more intense with each thrust Carlisle made. "OH MY GOD!" I screamed as I finally came undone, digging my nails into his back.  
Carlisle joined me a split second later, collapsing on top of me and rolling us over so I was lying across his chest. "My god, Esme. You're amazing," he said as he panted.  
"That was better than I could have imagined. Thank you so much for being patient with me," I said, placing a chaste kiss on his lips.

"The pleasure is all mine and you are worth waiting for, Beautiful," he whispered before kissing me again.

I smiled and blushed, ducking my head against his chest as he laughed.

Carlisle POV

Esme's apprehension was to be expected, but seeing her so upset and so scared damn near broke my heart.

I decided to run her a bath, hoping to relieve some of her tension and make her comfortable around me again, since this was another big step for us as a couple.

Making love to her was more than I hoped it would be. She was amazing, and we melted together. It's extremely cheesy, especially coming from a guy, but there was nothing between us – we were completely connected.

Our first time together may not have been my first, but it was hers, and I later found out I also gave her her first orgasm. Ever. Which did explain why my back was nearly scratched to pieces.

I woke the next morning to find Esme resting her chin on my bare chest. Her hair was all over the place and she wore a slight half smile that made her look unbelievably sexy.

"Morning Mrs Cullen."

"Good morning to you too," she said before sitting up slightly and pulling herself closer to me to kiss me. The whole time my eyes raked over her half exposed body. I was definitely the luckiest man alive - no doubt about that.

"What would you like for breakfast, Gorgeous?" I looked across her bare back and down to where the sheet sat on her hips.

"Carlisle, are you listening to me?" She tilted her head on one side. I hadn't realised that she'd been talking.

"I'm too busy admiring your body. I am a very lucky man indeed."

"I'm the lucky one finding a guy like you," she blushed. "I don't mind what we have for breakfast."

I sighed. It would take a little more time for her to see what I did. "How about scrambled egg on toast?" I suggested.

"That would be perfect," she said before kissing me.

"If you want breakfast, Esme, you better move."

She pouted a little. "Why can't you be my breakfast?"

"Sex doesn't count as a suitable substitute for breakfast, I'm afraid."

She huffed once. "Ok then," she agreed before shuffling to the other side of the bed.

As I dished up breakfast, Esme appeared, dressed in black shorts and a blue halter neck.

"What are we going to do today?" I asked as we ate.

"I was planning to go for a walk and do some photography. I can use it as inspiration for future projects and everyone wants to see photos anyway."

"Sounds like a plan. Do you want me to come with you?"

"Of course," she answered without hesitation.

"And then..?" I prompted.

"You'll see," she smiled seductively at me and all but purred.

We took pictures of the house and the surrounding area to show our friends and family. Later, we found a film on TV that was actually in English. It was a mushy romance and Esme cried, of course. She made me promise that we'd never get angry with one another and if we did we had to resolve it within the following hour.

"Didn't we do that yesterday?" I asked.

"Yes, but I wanted to make sure. Especially after…" She shuddered. "If we had an argument and I got a little angry it would fuel him and he would hurt me. That's what happened on that day." She looked down at her hands as we sat on the sofa.

"Esme," I put a finger under her chin and raised her face to mine, "I would never, ever hurt you. Not in a million years."

She smiled. "I know that, and I'm grateful. Thank you."

And that was how we ended up where we'd started the day. Esme was leaning on my chest again.

"Shall we just replay the day?" I laughed.

"Seems like that's all that's gonna happen. We'll go outside, sit around for a bit, have sex, have dinner, have sex and then sleep," she listed what we'd done today on her fingers.

I chuckled lightly. "Seems scary to think what all that sex could lead to in nine months time."

"Scary, but exciting. Even if it doesn't happen for us straight away, even though I hope it does somewhere down the line, I can't wait to have your babies, Carlisle," she sighed, placing a chaste kiss on my lips, which I held onto and drew out.

"Babies, huh? You and every other woman that has met me, but you know it'll only happen with you," I said, looking down at Esme to find her crying.

"I love you, Carlisle," she said, smiling through her obviously happy tears before sitting up and kissing me passionately.

* * *

**Well, there it is. I have completed my first lemon chapter. the most difficult thing for me to write and nothing seemed right to me - so many changes were made to this (even to the point where I didn't look at it for 2 years!) I had to look at other Fanfics to try and breakdown what they did that mine didn't and it helped a bit, but also made me frustrated as I knew what I wanted to say, but it wouldn't form the words I wanted, but that's always the way!**

**Anyway, let me know you you found it and any improvements, if any. And again, I'm sorry for giving up on this for 2 years!**


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm on a roll with getting these chapters sorted! I have decided to change the story a bit after this chapter (actually rewrote most of it) so another update very soon is quite unlikely, but I wont keep you waiting for 2 years like I did last time (and we may see some more lemony goodness soon, even though I thought my portrayal of it was shocking in the previous chapter, but practise makes perfect, right?)**

**This chapter is a bit of a downer compared to previous ones, but hopefully we'll pick the happy couple up and dust them off for the next chapter.**

* * *

Esme POV

The week and a half flew by. In a way I was glad, it would be nice to see everyone again. And for some bizarre reason I wanted to go back to work. Although I love my job, some clients were really hard to please and right now I had someone who kept changing their mind.

When we got home, there were several messages on both our mobiles. We didn't manage to pick up any calls while we were away and Carlisle had a different number that he used whenever he went to the island. All the messages were from my sister, but knowing her, it was only to ask about my sex life and nothing important so I decided to check them later.

I went into the kitchen to check what food we'd been left with and found a note stuck to the fridge.

_**Esme,**_

_**I tried phoning both you guys like a million times!**_

_**There's been an accident. Mum and Dad crashed into a bridge on the way home to Seattle the day after the wedding. The brakes on the car failed.**_

_**I really didn't want to tell you like this.**_

_**They didn't survive. Please call me, I need my big sister.**_

_**Love Kate**_

_**Xxx**_

"Carlisle!" I shouted as I ran from the kitchen.

I ran into his study and straight into him.

"What's happened?" He asked, worry all across his face.

I took a deep breath in an attempt to stop my sobs. "There was an accident. My parents died. The brakes on the car failed and they crashed into a bridge." I gave up trying to hold it in and collapsed in his arms.

"Shh shh," he rubbed my back as he held me.

"I need to phone Kate," I muttered after a few minutes.

"Ok. I'll be here if you need me."

I grabbed the house phone and went and sat in the garden and rang Kate.

"Esme! Did you get my note?" She nearly shouted when she picked up the phone.

"Yeah. We didn't pick up any calls while we were away. We should've been here."

"No. You didn't need to be. I think I'm coping a little. I always relied too much on you or mum."

"Were they taken to hospital or what?" I asked.

"They died instantly. Thankfully."

"How have you really been coping?"

"I was in shock when I heard and then I broke down for a couple of days. Organising the funeral helped. It kept me busy. I just need to finish phoning dad's friends and then I'm done. Talking to other people over and over about it helped. If anything, I'm getting bored of talking about it. At least they died together."

"That's what Carlisle said when his parents died. They died in a car accident too."

"Esme?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever you do, don't push him away. It will be harder to cope."

"I'll try."

There was some silence at the other end of the phone before she said, "I heard that Charles was a nasty piece of work."

I sighed. "What did she tell you?"

"She only told us that he messed you around. I think she may have told dad the full story when they were alone. Makes me wonder if that's why they crashed, other than the brakes failing."

"Do you want to know?"

"Not if you don't wanna talk about it." That meant 'of course'.

I took a deep breath and repeated the last thing I told my mother.

"Oh my God. I'm sorry Ezzie."

I smiled. She used to call me that because she couldn't say my name when she was little.

"When's the funeral?"

"Friday. At noon."

"I'll be there." I hung up the phone and let out a long breath before breaking down again.

Carlisle POV

I hated to see Esme crying, but now she showed no emotion. The funeral was a week ago and since then she'd been in a trance. She barely talked and Angela had to take over the business.

I decided to try and get her to talk. "Esme?"

She looked up at me from the other end of the sofa.

"How are you really feeling?" I asked quietly.

She slammed her book shut and put it on the coffee table. "I'm angry."

"Why?" I moved across the sofa towards her.

"I should've been here."

"What would you have done if you were here?" I moved again.

She got up and went to stand by the glass wall. I followed her.

"I would've told them to stick to main roads and…and…"

"'And' what?" I walked towards her again, forcing her to walk backwards into the corner.

"I don't know!" She shouted as her back made contact with the wall. "I don't know," she whispered as she slid down the wall and began to sob.

I knelt in front of her and waited for her to finish. After five minutes she looked at me.

"There was nothing I could do. It was an accident."

I sighed. She finally got it.

I moved next to her and lifted my arm, inviting her to lean against me. She leant her head against my shoulder and I rubbed her arm before grabbing her legs and pulling her onto my lap.

"Thank you," she said after a few minutes when her sobs had subsided.

"What for, Honey?"

"Being here for me and not giving up."

"Why would I give up on you? It was only a matter of time before you realised. You just needed a little push."

She tilted her head up to look at me and smiled.

"That's what I wanted to see." I leant down and kissed her.

* * *

"I'm home!" I called as I walked through the front door. There was no answer. _Odd._

I walked into the kitchen and found Esme on the floor, out cold.

"Shit!" I stared for a second before common sense hit me. "Esme, can you hear me?"

No response.

I checked for a pulse. _Check._

I ran and grabbed the phone. There was no way I could deal with this.

"Hello? I need an ambulance right away."

"Ok, what's happened?" A voice from the other end asked.

"I've just got in from work, my wife has collapsed. I don't know how long she's been out."

"Ok. They'll be about five minutes."

"Thank you," I said and hung up, even though I was told to stay on the line.

Exactly two minutes later, there was a knock on the door. I jumped up to answer it.

"Carlisle?" Sam, one of the paramedics, was more than surprised to see me.

"She's in the kitchen," I said before leading the way.

They quickly put Esme on a spinal board, seeing as we didn't know if she'd done anything to her back or neck. I travelled with her in the ambulance. When we got to the hospital, my uselessness continued to eat at me. At least Dr Smith was in tonight. She was the best doctor in the hospital after myself.

I sat around whilst we waited for various scans to come back. Her neck and spine were fine. No bones were broken, just some bruising. Whilst we waited for a blood test to come back, Esme came around.

"Where am I?" She asked.

"You're in hospital. Do you remember what happened?"

"I felt a little sick and walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water and after that I remember nothing."

"Probably because you fainted."

"Ok then Mrs Cullen. I have your blood test results back," Dr Smith said as she walked into the cubicle we'd been placed in.

"Do you know why I fainted?" Esme asked.

"Yep, and also why you felt sick too."

"Ok. It would help if you told us Dr Smith," I raised an eyebrow as she consulted Esme's test results again before nodding her head. She was an extremely good doctor, but always wanted to double check the information she had in front of her before telling you. She hated making mistakes.

"I want you to answer truthfully," she said. Esme nodded. "Have you been eating correctly recently?"

Esme looked down at her lap. "Not really. I've barely eaten anything since…" she trailed off with a shaky breath and I squeezed her hand.

"Your blood sugar is really low. If you don't start eating properly soon, we're looking at iron supplements and the like as you'll likely become anemic too."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure she's eating," I said with a smile.

"I'm sure you will Dr. Cullen. I'll go get you your discharge forms and then you're free to go," she said before turning and leaving.

Esme turned to me, "I'm not sure about you, but I was hoping she'd say something else."

"I know," I sighed. "We'll get you sorted out and maybe try again."

Esme nodded, "in a way, I'm disappointed, but glad I'm not. The damage I could've caused the past couple of weeks is scary to think about."

Dr. Smith walked back in with Esme's discharge forms and she signed them. As we walked out of the hospital with my arm around Esme's waist, I could feel that she had lost weight. Not much, but enough for me to notice, especially since I had barely touched her since our honeymoon.

I did half worry about my wife.

* * *

**Sorry for it being such a crap, downer of a chapter. But you know the drill - drop me a review anyway. **

**And as for some of the information above, I just went by common sense (and I've never spent the night in hospital, so don't know protocol for discharging or anything - I generally go in crippled, get bandaged up and given a set of crutches and some instructions and sent on my way. The joys of being clumsy and a horse rider!)**


End file.
